Sandes vs Mera Samaaj
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Sandes
An indigenous instant messaging platform designed for government organizations, offering end-to-end encrypted communication. It supports encrypted backups and OTP services, with privacy governed by Indian government regulations. Integration with other government systems is available at no cost.
- End-to-end encrypted messaging
- Encrypted backup
- Encrypted OTP service
- Government infrastructure hosting
- Integration with government systems
- Free to use
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Sandes is an open source based indigenous instant messaging platform developed by NIC, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India to facilitate instant messaging communication in Government organisations. It is hosted exclusively at Government infrastructure. It supports end to end encrypted messaging and encrypted backup and encrypted OTP service. Its privacy and data policy is governed by rules and regulations of the Government of India. Sandes can be integrated with other Government communications systems for sending encrypted messages without any cost. Currently Sandes is integrated with NIC email, DigiLocker and e-office. At present, full features of Sandes app are available only to the Government verified users. Employees of Government organisation need to contact the Nodal officer of their Ministry/ Department for verification. For information about Nodal officers write to us at support-sandes[at]nic[dot]in
Mera Samaaj
This platform allows communities to publish their directories online and connect with members. Users can upload photos, stay connected with family and relatives, and foster community bonds and philanthropy.
- Publish community directory online
- Connect with community members
- Upload photos with family and relatives
- Stay connected anytime, anywhere
- Promote philanthropy within community
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mera samaaj is an all-in-one social platform for communities. With mera samaaj, publish your community directory online, connect with community members on the go & bond with your relatives anytime, anywhere. As a mera samaaj member, you can upload photos with your family and relatives, and stay connected. Empower families to connect, celebrate their legacies, and promote philanthropy within their community
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Mera Samaaj at 5.0 against Sandes's 2.6. Sandes's advantage is update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (5 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Mera Samaaj holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sandes has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Sandes ships an update every 5 weeks, Mera Samaaj every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and June 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Sandes | Mera Samaaj |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.6 (5 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 56.6% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 68 MB | 65 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | NIC | Mahesh Bhavsar |
Customer experience
Sandes
Mera Samaaj
In-app purchases
Sandes
No in-app purchases
Mera Samaaj
No in-app purchases
